XX (ekusu kurosu): makyô densetsu

Kenta Fukasaku isn't the most focused of film makers. So, with film dealing with multiple narratives around the same time, it's a jumpy and patchy horror that could have been told straight. Still, it allows him to chop up some bits and pieces and assemble some moments that would seem obscure otherwise. Mainly, the scissor wielding woman whose presence is enjoyable, but befuddling. The rest of the film is a Wicker-Man with cellphones, which is interesting, but leaves you wondering why the police aren't phoned more often/at all. The performances are suitable and sometimes border on emotional, which adds to the scenes of real horror. Towards the end the pace levels out but remains furious.

X-CROSS is a weird little Japanese action flick, clearly shot on a low budget. It makes up for the deficiency of the budget by injecting a whole lot of wacky craziness and enthusiasm for the subject matter, in much the same way as a film like VERSUS, although it's a far cry from that sort of material.

The problem with X-CROSS is the story, which feels dragged-out and long-winded. There's not a great deal of plot once the initial premise is out of the way: a couple of girls travel to a remote village to partake in the hot springs there as a means of spiritual refreshment and relaxation. Unfortunately, the village just so happens to be home to a murderous cult. Who can they trust and will they escape?

Basically, this is one long chase movie, shot in the dark and with typical Japanese weirdness. Some of the plot elements are a lot of fun, like the crazy girl with the giant pair of scissors who seems intent on slaughtering our heroines, but other elements, like all of the mobile phone mystery sub-plots, are overdone and drag out a bit. The execution is also only so-so - on the strength of this and BATTLE ROYALE 2, director Kenta Fukasaku is no match for the talents of his superior father.

On the one hand, the premise is very promising, recalling international classics from the 70s. On the other hand, even within the first five minutes we're greeted (and not for the last time) with small choices of stylization (e.g., a sparkling effect on metal, and on the title card) that raise a skeptical eyebrow. On the one hand, we're readily treated to absolutely outstanding, creepy production design and art direction, readily inviting an unsettling atmosphere that evokes Christophe Gans' 'Silent Hill,' or the essential masterpieces of John Carpenter. On the other hand, Fukasaku Kenta's direction quickly tends to feel gauchely forthright if not also overcharged, with a further apparent predilection for stylization, that (a) does not pair well with image quality and production values that are intermittently and irregularly bare-faced and glaring, and which (b) run contrary to the atmosphere the picture otherwise aims to conjure. Within a fraction of the total runtime (one-sixth) 'X-cross' begins to feel like a mixed bag, and we must hope that the scales will come to tip in a favorable direction.

Unfortunately, I don't think the situation improves. I don't know where the responsibility lies, though I suspect it's split between director Fukasaku, writer Oishi Tetsuya, the source material of Joko Nobuyuki, and producer Kondo Masatake. The fact is that what sounds like a fantastic concept, and which boasts some fine contributions in various capacities, is less than fully convincing. In all regards - the plot and its development, scene writing, dialogue, characterizations - the writing is so blunt and straightforward as to be gawky, ham-fisted, and off-putting. There is no subtlety or nuance in the conjuration, seemingly stemming from the novel as much as the adaptation, and frankly, despite good ideas the storytelling is just flimsy. Blame the writing as one will, however, Fukasaku's direction doesn't do much to impress either. Elements and moments that should be striking and delightfully twisted - a character being startled, a strange village elder, a distinct sound effect - are presented in such a curt and flat manner that all their power is forfeit. Even the climax struggles heavily. Furthermore, his direction indeed remains consistently overzealous, and tactless, and the embellishments of stylization continue to plague the proceedings, too. All the feature needed to do was to tell a story, but it goes overboard in so many ways trying to be Extra, and in so doing, it stumbles.

Ike Yoshihiro's music tends to suffer from these same problems. So do the costume design, hair, and makeup. Even the shot composition, cinematography, editing, and sound design come across as overwrought, as if the folks involved thought themselves to be more clever than they are. All aspects may bear some good ideas, by all means, but these only get us so far when the execution leaves so much to be desired. Granted, it's not all bad. I maintain that the production design and art direction are strong, and the filming locations are splendid. Even the lighting is swell in helping to summon that atmosphere, and many practical effects and stunts are very good. But too much of the acting does just as much to earn one's ire, and the gaudy flourishes that are so profuse in these ninety minutes wear thin swiftly. Case in point, someone thought very highly of themselves as the plot development adopts a "non-linear" structure - but here that notion is terribly cheapened with rapid rewinding or fast-forwarding of scenes we've already watched so as to shift to concurrent events focusing on another character from the point of where a given scene left off.

Further consider some extra over-the-top dialogue, props, or scenes, and one character who seems to be present for no particular reason at all, and the esteem one may be inclined to bestow drops significantly over time. I believe there was real potential in the concept, but some ideas clash - sometimes trying to be an earnest horror-thriller, sometimes unabashedly leaning into the approach of a pure fun-loving romp - and some are just plain bad. The definite strengths are all too few, the possible strengths are highly variable, and the shortcomings and faults are entirely too numerous. Part of me feels bad about being so critical, but time and again as I watched I recognized dubious creative choices that robbed the movie of all its impact, and the end product is ultimately just rather vexing and tiresome. There are far worse ways to spend one's time, certainly, yet with so much else that we could be watching in the first place, be it wild lark or chilling thriller, why would we spend our time here? I'm glad for those who enjoy 'X-cross' more than I do, but I somewhat wish I had spent ninety minutes more wisely.

Not bad, not bad at all. Great horror movie. Lets start with the setting. High Budget Japanese Horror Movie, the setting is very nice even the use of fog made it look a bit better and colorful. The acting, okay good? The atmosphere, not too scary but nice. The direction, perfect!! But the real entertainment was the Crazy Bitch holding a large pair of scissors. Now thats what I call a cult movie. The monsters, the priest and the ugly dwarfs made this movie entertaining. But it didn't received a 9 or 10? Well, because it repeats. I don't want to spoil the movie, again. But I recommend it to everyone. Rent it or buy it. Its your choice.

Came in with low expectations to find that this movie really works. It is sold as 'horror' but it's really not. Sure there's a village that wants to sacrifice these 2 girls to their god, but it's not really 'horror' at all. The movie unfolds as an action/suspense movie really as the two leads are separated minutes into the movie and then we have follow their survival paths and see where they continually almost link up. It sounds cliché almost, but really it works. There's no body count, no gore, just an old fashioned "who's betrayed me" plot while running from the masses. And I actually did NOT figure out whodunit and was nicely surprised when it all unfolded.